For a food item, the temperature of the food item is of importance in obtaining a desired result. In the heating of a food item, for example, the temperature of the food item often plays a determinative role in the extent to which the food item is cooked. In the cooling of a food item, as another example, the temperature of the food item often plays a determinative role in the extent to which the food item is preserved for future consumption.
The temperature of a food item can also be relevant to the desired taste of the food item. The temperatures necessary to achieve a desired taste of a food item are generally known. The temperature of a food item can also be relevant to the safety of a food item. To this end, for example, the U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) has issued guidelines establishing temperatures at which it considers a food item to be adequately cooked to sufficiently destroy microbial or other biological contaminants in the food item so as to make the food item generally safe to eat.
For these and other purposes, food thermometers have been used to measure the temperature of a food item. A drawback of some known food thermometers is that one can be required to be physically present at the location of the food item being heated or cooled in order to view the temperature displayed by the food thermometer. This can inconveniently prevent the user from attending to other activities, and can require the user to return to the heating or cooling location to monitor the progress of the heating or cooling. If the food is being heated and the user does not return in time, the food item can become overheated (i.e., overcooked). If the food is being cooled and the user does not return in time, the food item can become undesirably cold.
Typical food thermometers display the current temperature of the food. A user is thus required to read the display, recall the desired temperature of the food, and thereby evaluate whether the food is sufficiently cooked (or cooled), or how close the food is to being sufficiently cooked (or cooled). This limited delivery of information can cause delay or inefficiency, especially if the user is engaged in multiple tasks simultaneously.
Devices that remotely monitor the temperature of a food item being heated or cooled are known; however, such devices can have one or more drawbacks. First, such devices can require specialized equipment, including a first unit located where the food item is being heated or cooled, and a second unit located remotely from where the food item is being heated or cooled. Such use of two specialized units can cause such devices to be relatively expensive. Further, such devices can have limited flexibility in use and limited programmability. One temperature monitoring device and method is disclosed in U.S. Pat. No. 8,931,400, whose teachings are hereby incorporated by reference in their entirety.